Janensch: Brusque? A good editor must be

Published 3:15 pm, Friday, May 23, 2014

Virtually everything written about her in the past year, before and after she was dumped by publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr., describes her as brusque.

In a statement justifying her dismissal, Sulzberger denied that sexism played a role in his decision.

He said Abramson had engaged in "arbitrary decision-making, a failure to consult and bring colleagues with her, inadequate communication and the public mistreatment of colleagues."

In other words, she was brusque.

Abramson, 60, the first woman to run the Times news operation, even described herself as brusque.

According to the dictionary, brusque means abrupt or blunt and comes from the Latin word bruscus for a rough butcher's broom.

A newspaper editor or TV or radio news director or content manager - whatever the top news executive is called - must be brusque.

All the good editors I worked for in my 35 years in the news business were brusque. When I was an editor, I was brusque.

As a news operation's chief honcho, you should consult with your colleagues and at times with other members of management, including the publisher, or whatever title your boss has.

But when you are on deadline -- and in today's digital environment you are always on deadline -- decisions must be made quickly as to what to cover and how to cover it.

Plans must be laid and assignments made. You seldom have time for lots of discussion. You don't want to get beat by the competition.

Sometimes news staffers chafe under brusque leadership. They are proud, usually talented, and occasionally resentful when told what to do.

Many think of themselves as members of a college faculty and should be allowed to do their work with a minimum of supervision. One columnist who worked for me said the job of an editor "is to get out of my way."

But a news operation is like an army or a police force or a sports team. The general or the commissioner or the coach does not get out of the way. That person gives orders. Often in a brusque manner.

It is important to note that no one accused Abramson of being incompetent, unethical or lazy.

During her two and a half years as the top editor, the Times won eight Pulitzer Prizes, including four last year. Newspapers don't win Pulitzers with editors who are timid.

Some women in journalism have accused Sulzberger and other males at the top of the corporate world of having a double standard. The women complain that when attributed to a male, brusque means "no nonsense," but when attributed to a female brusque means "bitchy."

They note that A.M. "Abe" Rosenthal, former top editor of the Times, was notoriously brusque and still greatly admired. So was Ben Bradlee, former top editor of The Washington Post.

At the end of 2011, Janet Robinson, president of The New York Times Co., suddenly resigned with a severance of $23 million. It was believed she had personal conflicts with Sulzberger and other members of his family.

Perhaps she was brusque with them.

I hope Dean Baquet, Abramson's successor and the first African-American to hold that job at the Times, is brusque -- and that Arthur Sulzberger learns to live with it.

Paul Janensch, of Bridgeport, was a newspaper editor and taught journalism at Quinnipiac University. His "Memo on the Media" can be heard at 6:40 a.m. Wednesdays and again at 8:40 a.m. of Fridays on WQUN, 1220AM in Hamden and on WQUN.COM.